Together, we share the sadness of other Americans over the Arizona tragedy and extend our sympathy to the families of the six individuals who died. We pray for the recovery of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, a dedicated public servant who has been a strong advocate for mental health, and the 13 other persons who were wounded.

Based on reports from those who knew him, it is becoming more and more clear that the young man responsible suffers from a mental illness and people were aware of his condition. Arizona has a broad civil commitment law. In Florida this is known as the Baker Act, requiring treatment if needed. However, the law cannot work if an evaluation is never conducted or mental-health services are not accessible.

When tragedies involving mental illness occur, it is essential to understand the nature of mental illness, realize that acts of violence are exceptional, find out what went wrong and take action on the root cause rather than perpetuate a more fearful populace and limit accessibility to public figures and places.

Consider these facts:

n Mental illnesses are among the most prevalent of all illnesses, among the leading causes of death and disability.

n The U.S. surgeon general has reported that the likelihood of violence from people with mental illness is low and "the overall contribution of mental disorders to the total level of violence in society is exceptionally small."

n Mental illnesses play a significant role in many of society's most costly problems: child abuse, economic and employment failure, homelessness, drug abuse.

Despite these facts, mental illnesses remain among the least publicly discussed and funded illnesses. Systems of care have been permitted to languish because of lack of public funding (Florida ranks 49th in funding for these illnesses). Critical initiatives such as mental-health parity, despite being passed by Congress, have been buried among other state and local priorities and it continues to not be a reality in Florida. The result is a nationally broken system with inadequate access.

In Collier County, the first line of defense is often law enforcement and crisis stabilization units. The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), the David Lawrence Center and the Collier County Sheriff's Office have proactively implemented crisis-intervention training, a course that teaches law-enforcement officers and other providers the signs and symptoms of mental illness and techniques in de-escalation and calm intervention. The program is designed to divert individuals to inpatient crisis stabilization and voluntary follow-up mental-health treatment. Access to this kind of care is critical for people suffering a psychiatric crisis, but it is imperative that we appropriately fund these services or the system doesn't work.

Our local crisis-stabilization unit is the only Baker Act receiving facility in Collier County and it needs to be expanded, but neither state nor county funding has been available to provide funding for additional beds.

We know that early intervention, education and treatment improve the outlook for anyone with a mental illness. We also know that it takes a commitment from many private and public organizations to have an adequate system of care. Successful partnerships with organizations such as the Naples Children and Education Foundation and other health-care providers are helping improve access and awareness locally, but there is much more work to be done.

We know the solution; we just need adequate awareness, funding and public support to make it happen.

Hunter is executive director of the Collier County Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) — (239) 434-6726, www.namicollierco.org. Schimmel is CEO of the David Lawrence Center — (239) 455-8500, www.DavidLawrenceCenter.org — the not-for-profit community mental-health and substance-abuse treatment provider with locations in Naples and Immokalee.